By R.L. Bynum
No. 6 North Carolina got clutch hitting and made the big pitches to get out of jams as the Tar Heels extended their season-opening win streak to five games.
The Tar Heels won the first game of a three-day, three-city series 2–0 over East Carolina on a chilly afternoon before a crowd of 6,695 at Durham Bulls Athletic Park to snap a two-game losing streak against the Pirates, who left 10 runners on base.
Carolina could muster only five hits, but ace sophomore right-hander Jason DeCaro (winner, 2–0; 4 hits, 0 runs, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts) was sharp again and escaped a bases-loaded jam in the fifth inning.
Freshman right-hander Walker McDuffie came on to get out of another bases-loaded jam in the seventh inning. He threw 2.1 hitless innings with no walks and three strikeouts to pick up his first save.
UNC (5–0) came close twice to getting that elusive first home run of the season but has now gone homerless in five straight games, the longest streak since April 2018 (three games against Miami and games against Appalachian State and Virginia).
Luke Stevenson hit a warning-track fly ball for the second straight game, lofting a drive near the right-center field wall in the first inning.
DeCaro pitched around Kenan Bowman’s one-out bloop single in the second inning, eliciting a groundout and striking out Alex Bouche with Bowman on third to end the threat by ECU (2–3).
UNC broke through for two runs off East Carolina starter Ethan Norby (0–2; 4.2 innings, 4 hits, 2 runs, 1 walk, 6 strikeouts) in the fifth inning after Gavin Gallaher got the Tar Heels’ first lead-off hit of the game with a single.
Hunter Stokely then laced a double down the left-field line. Gallaher scored on Kane Kepley’s groundout and Stokely came home on Tyson Bass’ infield single.
DeCaro got out of a bases-loaded, two-out jam in the bottom of the fifth — after giving up two singles and a walk — when Jack Herring flew out.
Freshman right-hander Ryan Lynch relieved DeCaro, who threw 92 pitches, with a runner on first and one out in the sixth inning. After Lynch recorded a strikeout but gave up a single, junior right-hander Matthew Matthijs (1 inning, 1 hit, 1 walk, 1 strikeout) came on and struck out Bouche to get out of the inning.
After ECU loaded the bases on Matthijs in the seventh with two outs on a single, a walk and a hit batsman, McDuffie came on and struck out Dixon Wallace to get out of the inning and retired all seven batters he faced.
NOTES — The three-city series continues at 1 p.m. Sunday at Boshamer Stadium (ACC Network Extra), with two right-handers, UNC senior Jake Knapp (0–0, 3.00 ERA) and ECU freshman Sean Jenkins (0–0, 1.59 ERA) starting. Senior right-hander Aidan Haugh (0–0, 3.00 ERA) will start the series finale at 5 p.m. Monday at Clark-LeClair Stadium in Greenville. ECU hasn’t named a starter. … With Duke playing its home games on campus instead of at the DBAP, this was the first baseball game of the season at the stadium. … Carolina leads the series 61–36, including 2–0 at the DBAP. … UNC coach Scott Forbes evened his record against ECU to 6–6, while Pirates coach Cliff Godwin is now 9–11 against the Tar Heels. … Carolina leads ECU 7–4 in neutral-site meetings.
No. 6 UNC 2, ECU 0
UNC schedule
| Date(s) | Day/ month | Times | Opponent (current rank) |
|---|---|---|---|
| February | |||
| 13–15 | Fri.-Sat. | 4, noon, 1 | vs. Indiana |
| 17 | Tuesday | 4 p.m. | vs. Richmond |
| 18 | Wednesday | 4 p.m. | vs. Longwood |
| 20–22 | Fri.-Sun. | 4 (Greenville; ESPN+), 2 (DBAP), 2 (CH) | vs. East Carolina |
| 24 | Tuesday | 4 p.m. | vs. N.C. A&T |
| 25 | Wednesday | 4 p.m. | vs. VCU |
| 27–28 | Fri., Sat. | 4 p.m., 2 p.m. | vs. Le Moyne |
| March | |||
| 1 | Sunday | 1 p.m. | vs. Le Moyne |
| 3 | Tuesday | 4 p.m. | vs. Elon |
| 6–8 | Fri.-Sun. | 4, 2, 1 | vs. Virginia |
| 10 | Tuesday | 4 p.m. | vs. Bucknell |
| 13–15 | Fri.-Sun. | 9, 5, 4 | at California |
| 18 | Wednesday | 4 p.m. | vs. UNCG |
| 20–22 | Fri.-Sun. | 8, 2, 1 Friday on ACCN | vs. No. 8 Louisville |
| 24 | Tuesday | 6:30 | vs. South Carolina in Charlotte |
| 27–29 | Fri.-Sun. | 6:30, 3, 1 | at Notre Dame |
| 31 | Tuesday | 8 p.m., ACCN | vs. Campbell |
| April | |||
| 2–4 | Thur.-Sat. | 6, 6, 2 | vs. Boston College |
| 7 | Tuesday | 7 p.m., ACCN | vs. Charlotte |
| 10–12 | Fri.-Sun. | 6, 2, 12:30 (Sunday on ACCN) | at No. 19 Clemson |
| 14 | Tuesday | 6 p.m. | vs. UNCW |
| 17–19 | Fri-Sun. | 6, noon, 1 (Saturday, Sunday on ACCN) | vs. No. 5 Georgia Tech |
| 21 | Tuesday | 6 p.m. | vs. High Point |
| 23–25 | Thu.-Sat. | 7, 6, 3 (Thursday on ACCN) | at Duke |
| 28 | Tuesday | 7 p.m., ACCN | vs. No. 6 Coastal Carolina |
| 29 | Wednesday | 6 p.m. | vs. Queens |
| May | |||
| 3 | Sunday | 2 p.m., ACCN (non-conference game) | vs. Duke |
| 6 | Wednesday | 6 p.m. | vs. Winthrop |
| 8–10 | Fri.-Sun. | 6, noon, 1 | vs. Pittsburgh |
| 12 | Tuesday | 6 p.m. | at UNCW |
| 14–16 | Thurs.-Sat. | 7, 6, 1 (Thursday on ACCN) | at No. 17 N.C. State |
| 19–24 | Tues.-Sun. | ACC tournament (ACCN, ESPN2 for final) | Charlotte |
| 29–31 | Fri.-Sun. | NCAA Regionals | Campus sites |
| June | |||
| 5–7 | Fri.-Sun. | NCAA Super Regionals | Campus sites |
| 12–22 | Fri.-Mon | College World Series | Omaha, Neb. |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
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